In the season finale of "South Park," the boys learned a valuable lesson: "Do not raku disciprine." It may have been told in a mildly offensive, yet still funny accent, but the message of the boys instructor rang loud and true in 2005. "Disciprine" was back.
No story was bigger than the Terrell Owens saga in 2005. Without rehashing the details, here are two general observations that I think are found in the rest of my examples. One, management said, "Enough is enough. This has to end." Maybe the Eagles were not as good as they were last year, but they were still a playoff team when the Owens situation went from bad to irrevocably awful.
Two, the fan base had an identical reaction. They were steadfastly behind the organization. A mock funeral was held and No. 81 jerseys were destroyed. They were willing to take on a 6-10 season and lose their shot at the Super Bowl, solely on the principle that they were sick of rooting for a jerk like Terrell Owens.
In Indiana, we are watching the same thing unfold with Ron Artest, who in the words of a close friend has "a mental injury." The Artest situation is nearly identical to the T.O. saga. One, Donnie Walsh and Co. wants Artest gone. The time for apologies is over. He is still a Top 10 player, and they do not care. Two, the fans cannot wait to get rid of him either. Even though with Artest they might win a championship, the fans are more rabid about trading him and waiting as long as possible for the right offer, even if it means the losses keep piling up. Artest wants back on the team, and no one wants him back.
The Artest situation is unique in that we are living with the fallout, and that is the third element. No one else wants Artest either. His destructive personality is so well known, the other 29 fan bases and front offices are terrified of making a deal for him, even if it is for 50 cents on the dollar. He is more radioactive than Toby was on the "West Wing" after the leak. The T.O. free agency will confirm what I am talking about in a few months. Eventually, he will be playing for peanuts wherever he ends up.
Now, to be fair these seem like extreme examples. Here are a few more about how players increasingly lost power to "disciprine" in 2005.
The NBA a) avoided a lockout without budging much from its final offer, b) implemented an extremely strict dress code that no one dares break, c) will fine players for publicly requesting trades. The fan base very vocally welcomed all of these measures. Larry Brown and Phil Jackson were the biggest off-season acquisitions, specifically because they would bring order, "disciprine," and sanity to their franchises. Steve Francis and Stephon Marbury, two classic me-first guys who burn bridges, are begging not to be traded and being lumped in with Ron and Terrell. The next Olympic team is publicly being touted as one that will be a team, not a marketing opportunity, and is being assembled by the brilliant Jerry Colangelo with role players and team-first players, not jerks.
The NHL nearly destroyed itself in an effort to crush the players union. It won, and hockey has actually had a successful season so far considering how dim the expectations were. Fans overwhelmingly blame the players for the lockout.
Baseball and the United States Congress have finally taken steps to get steroids out of the game. Its Donald Fehr's first loss, well, ever. Fans attack players for their position to keep the game juiced.
Marcus Vick. Enough said. Enjoy that fifth round draft selection Marcus. I hear Maurice Clarett is looking for a getaway driver.
Lastly, the "disciprine revolution" came to Charlottesville. Pete Gillen out, Dave Leitao in. Al Groh lays down a zero tolerance policy on Brad Butler's dirty hit, even though the mighty Seminoles were next on the schedule. Several weeks later, four players were suspended for conduct detrimental to the team before facing then-No. 24 Georgia Tech. I have to wonder if the fact this kind of stuff was going on and the fact we had a so-so year are not somewhat correlated. "Disciprine" is what makes athletes focused, and U.Va. football was anything but focused on several occasions this year. Then again, Coach Groh laying down the law might have gotten everyone else in gear. We won both of those games.
There are others out there, but I need to make room for the Life page. I am not sure what the cause of this sudden change is yet. Maybe it is a product of a more conservative America. Maybe people realize that "undisciprined" nut jobs do not win games and this is a pragmatic response. Maybe people are just sick of it. Whatever it is, it is a nice change of pace.
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